Is anyone auto crossing their Roadster?

[jr02518]

The seats are on an up swing, the frames are being painted. What ever foam material was made of in the day has held up surprisingly well. If if turns to dust, it will be replaced, but given how light the previous owner was much is being reused. I should say removed. This has been more like dissembling a layer cake.
The seating material has been chosen, the rebuilding of the bolsters has been addressed and today I start paying for them. I have placed an order for parts to complete the latest phase of getting the car running. The Racemark steering wheel, with patina, is going into the car. And I am leaving the rebuild of the front end, to last.
One of the hold ups is the front springs. I have first hand knowledge of spring rates and shock valving requirements. I am not building a race car. I am building a car for spirited driving. I am attempting to thread that fine line between stock and enhanced. I want enhanced. I know spending money is going to happen, I am hopping to find the springs I can live with while the shocks come into focus. The requirements of replacing the front end bushings give me a perfect time to upgrade those springs. Once.
I already have the 23mm front bar on the car, that I will have to again reinstall. That I get to fight again. Not everything goes to plan, right?

[gtrbg]

If anyone is interested there is a VSCCA track event at Lime Rock in CT this spring that is open to race and street cars. There will be at least one roadster there. Fun way to get your car on the track. I hope to be there assuming I get through fixing a few items.

https://www.vscca.org/vscca-events

[jr02518]

The seats, are coming together. Pictures, to follow. I am having them done in a combination of fabric centers, with a Recaro type cloth and leather on the bolsters. The bolsters have been, enhanced. Reusing the foam core of the seats has worked in this case. The enhancements are the reflection of foam glued on and cut to the desired proportions. Again reusing the OEM foam is a testament to how the car was stored and the lightness of the previous owner. The non seating surfaces are going to be naugahyde, spending money on these, there it a limit. Right?

Now, shocks and springs for the front end? I am prepared to RnR the front bushings, top and bottom. The ball joints look to have been done, but based on the parts sourced to keep the car on the road I will reserve judgment until it is in it's deconstructed form. Then I can create a shopping list.

The front breaks, will be upgraded to a Volvo veneration. That work with the existing 14" rim and tire combination. The car will remain a 1600 and unsprung weight is a consideration. I see light, but the tunnel continues with this car!

[jr02518]

The slog of getting the car back together continues. Geting the tachometer replaced with one that has a needle is proving to be a slow methodical combination of removing all the required stuff in the way of the top wing nut. Next, is removing the speedo.

Up until I was adding coolant to the refreshed system, all the hoses have been replaced including the heater lines, a few observations. Don't forget the grommet, for that heater hose. That requires you to spend twice as much time to install, when you forget to order it, the first time. Do not be tempted to just cut the new one to possibly make its installation easer. Next the coolant thank should come out when you remove the radiator and it should be refreshed at the same time, on the same trip. Or you could be like me and not do the time saving thing. Turns out my tank was full of stuff that adding fresh coolant to tank would reintroduce to my cooling system. That and the seam on the back side next to the bulk head was in very poor condition. To the point that a what looks like a very poor application of way to much solder at the seam was still leaking. Not to worry, the second trip to the radiator shop is correcting that issue. And the fresh coat of paint on the tank will match the radiator. That now has a much better chance of keeping the car cool, now that system will hold pressure. With all those fresh hoses. No, I did not remove and flush the heat matrix. Yes, I know that is my next potential issue, guaranteed.

Shock absorbers, double adjustable Penske shock absorbers can be built for a Datsun Roadster. The fronts can be constructed with the correct mounting structure with "posts" at both ends. The rears are not an issue. "If", no when I get this done, honestly budgeted and paid for, I will pass on his name. There will be no attempt at a group purchase. The people that build these systems are not geared up to work with a herd, of any size. Now I need to source the spring rates he suggested. Again, I am not building a race car to drive on the street. I am building a car for spirited driving at events. That is not on a trailer, being shuttled to those events. To drive in a "street" class.

That, is why I sold my Miata.

[eastmedia]

about 10 years ago.

[buenavides1]

about 10 years ago.

It seems like you had so much fun watching these short track adventure of yours.

[jr02518]

Progress, when working with others, can be slow. Having them rebuild the seats to to other than a known and stock configuration, is a test. We are getting close and I can wait. Yes, I have no choice at this point.

But the next system that is on my list is the front end, that includes the front brakes. I would like to get it running, just to prove it will, but the slop in the bushings will do nothing good for the fresh tires on the car. Deciding on the springs will fix a number of details moving forward. I know, it's obvious but the ride quality for putting around will suffer.

[TexasStig]

I think the rear suspension might be problematic... It just doesn't work well with the latest tire technology. Do you know what class your running?

[jr02518]

On a local basis, the Cal Club SCCA Region, we have an active group that run a "Historic" class/pax for older cars. My car, a 1600, will run the H Street index. I had a fresh, but older, set of Falken 615K's on had and that is what the car will start on for coming events. I will be moving on to their new 660's eventually.

I purchased the car and it has a fresh set of KYB's in place. I have had a conversation with a know source for custom shocks and now I have a budget number work too.

So, I am looking at running with a couple of well sorted Morgans, time and money is all it takes.

[jr02518]

The seats, are finished and will be picked up this week. Again, pictures to come. Now, the front suspension. I should say saving the money to purchase the parts to rebuild the front end. Starting with the front springs. Building around the know spring rates is still causing me a moment of "what if". Yes, the car will be driven in events that will work the suspension. I have and currently compete with a car that runs a "complaint" sett-up, it is still enjoyable to drive on the road.
This car will remain a "street" car, the events are only on the weekends. Sometimes.

[Gregs672000]

I've had 80's era Comp front springs on my car since I've owned it, 35 years. I have used very shock available. There is no modern ride in a Roadster... stuff will shake, you can hit frame rattling bumps at times, but there simply is no comparison between any shock I've use and the Bilsteins. The car is the best it's ever been in all circumstances, period. I love all our vendors and everything they do for us. I thank JT on a regular basis, especially driving unknown roads in the mountains like we do, as does my wife with back injuries. This car has always been built on a budget. If there's any question at all, save your dimes and buy the Bilsteins. I think they will make more difference than the springs.

[jr02518]

This will be an excuse, but it will be mine. In keeping with the letter of the rules when running with the SCCA and building a car, in this case, to the "H" Street guide lines I will be keeping the stock springs.

I will also be keeping the brand new KYB,s on the car as purchased, to create some sort of base line to develop from. The rules allow for a change of sway bar, front or rear but not both and I have the biggest front bar available. I can tune the under steer/ oversteer dilemma with a combination of air pressure and throttle input. Yes at the cost of tire wear, that's the fun part of car development. I am at peace with body roll during spirited driving.

Your car gets into more action shots at events. Then I will start savings for the shocks. Those are unlimited in the rules.

[Gregs672000]

I don't auto cross my car, and as already noted I've had comp springs the entire time... not much body roll with ANY shock as I recall. What the Bs do for you is absorb any imperfections in the surface and not harshly transfer that to the car like any other shock I used, and they allow the compliance necessary to keep the tail end from jittering itself around corners if it does. This makes ALL the difference at speed in a corner on a typical mountain road... all I have to do it concentrate on the corner and not concern myself too much with the road surface (to a point of course). Makes the car way more fun and SAFE to drive.

I know, I'm driving you crazy right now as you work on budget and Performance! I fully understand. But do save your dimes and skip the extra coffee... for me the Bs are worth it.

[jr02518]

Greg,

I understand the input and I do run Bilsteins on many of my cars. I have them on my 1994 2wd Nissan Pathfinder, as well as my 1982 BMW E-21and a 1994 BMW E-36. For this car I am going even deeper into the rabbit hole with a set of double adjustable shocks. Just not until I get some seat time. My 1994 NA Miata was running single adjustable Koni shocks on stock springs and you can feel the settings doing their work.

I will be able to fine tune compression and rebound, front and rear. Lots of practice laps in my future.

David

[Gregs672000]

Without a doubt you know way more about this stuff than I! I'm just super happy to have this option for my street car. I look forward to hearing of your endeavours and experiments!